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NEADS National Student Awards and Holly Bartlett Memorial Award -- Deadline March 15th

The National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS) is now accepting applications for the NEADS National Student Awards Program and the Holly Bartlett Memorial Award. These awards are offered to encourage full access to post-secondary education for persons with disabilities enrolled in undergraduate, graduate or professional degree programs at recognized Canadian universities, or in certified diploma programs at Canadian colleges. A minimum of seven outstanding applicants, who meet the criteria of the Student Awards Program, will be receiving an award in the amount of $3,000 to support the costs of their tuition and student fees. One deserving applicant will receive the new Holly Bartlett Memorial Award in the amount of $1,000.

Funding for the NEADS Student Awards has been supported since 2006 by BMO Capital Markets' Equity Through Education Program, a charitable initiative aimed at creating a more diverse workplace by offering educational opportunities to people who are most in need of support. In May 2006, NEADS became one of four Canadian recipients of donations from the second Equity Through Education trading day and our scholarship program was established after the funding announcement. This year we are thrilled to announce that Enbridge Pipelines Inc. has become a new sponsor of the program, providing support to three awards in 2012/2013.

“We are very excited about this new partnership with NEADS, and proud to sponsor and support the NEADS awards to post-secondary students,” said Dr. Lori Campbell, Manager of Diversity at Enbridge Pipelines. “We’re pleased to offer these awards to students to help offset some of the costs of tuition so they can continue focusing on excelling in both the classroom and their community.”

"We are very proud of the NEADS Student Awards Program, and our 45 recipients over its first five years," said Dr. Mahadeo Sukhai, NEADS' Senior Advisor and the director of the student awards program. "This program is the first of its kind in Canada, and was created to recognize overall excellence among students with disabilities in all aspects of post-secondary education. Our winners to date all embody the very best qualities of academic and community involvement. We hope that the program continues to grow, and we look forward to this year's crop of outstanding applicants."

"Holly Bartlett was loved by all who knew her", said Frank Smith, NEADS' National Coordinator. "It was my privilege and pleasure to work with Holly while she served on our Board of Directors. Holly's accomplishments, in a life that was way too short, were phenomenal. We believe that she should be honoured and the Holly Bartlett Memorial Award is a fitting tribute because it will help other students with disabilities realize success in post-secondary education. This is the second year for the Award in Holly's memory."

For more information, please contact the NEADS office: National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS), Rm. 426 Unicentre, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, K1S 5B6, tel. (613) 380-8065, or go directly to our Equity Through Education Student Awards website:
http://www.neads.ca/en/about/projects/ete2/scholarship/